BLACKBURN Rovers number one target Dave Bassett has ruled himself out of the race to fill the vacant manager's job at Ewood.

And that means the club will now have to turn their attentions elsewhere with caretaker boss Tony Parkes remaining an option to take over on a permanent basis.

But former Bolton boss Colin Todd is also waiting in the wings and the likes of Graeme Souness may now be alerted by the latest developments.

Barnsley boss Bassett has admitted he was tempted by a possible move to Rovers after speculation in the tabloids linked him with the post.

But after summit talks with Tykes chairman John Dennis on Monday, his loyalty to the Oakwell club proved too strong.

"Basically, I understand I was on the short list for the Blackburn job. They didn't make an approach but I heard it on the grapevine," said Bassett.

"My chairman was aware of it and he indicated to me that he wouldn't like me to go if Blackburn came in.

"But, from my point of view, I feel I've only been at Barnsley six months and it wouldn't have been particularly loyal to have left so quickly.

"You have to be tempted when a club like Blackburn are rumoured to be interested.

"My chairman said to me he wouldn't be able to offer me the same wages or transfer kitty Blackburn could offer.

"So, it's a big job and an excellent job, but it's come at the wrong time for me.

"If they had approached me in the summer when I was out of work or if things weren't working out at Barnsley then of course I'd have been interested.

"But I believe in a certain amount of loyalty.

"When I was at Sheffield United I had a couple of chances to leave for bigger clubs but I decided to stay put.

"But loyalty is a two-way thing. It can't be one way.

"If a club stands by you then you've got to stand by them.

"I understand Blackburn are going to take their time in appointing a new manager and I think that's wise.

"Tony Parkes is doing a good job at the minute so their need to appoint someone isn't urgent."

Barnsley chairman Dennis was also delighted that Bassett has committed himself to the Yorkshire club after his shrewd management has steered them into the play-offs this season.

"We had a chat and talked about a few things and tweaked a few things here and there," said Dennis.

"But I must state that this has not been all about money.

"Dave Bassett is very happy at Barnsley and he has committed himself to us."

Rovers chief executive John Williams today insisted the club will not been panicked into making an appointment.

But the news that Bassett is now out of the running is sure to come as a hammer blow to the Ewood club.

In the meantime Parkes will continue to hold the fort and he made it five points out of nine from his three games in charge so far with a battling 0-0 draw at lowly Crewe last night.

Rovers caretaker boss admitted it was far from a vintage performance, but in the end he was happy to settle for a point.

"It was quite an average performance, really, " said Parkes.

"We dominated a lot of parts of the game, particularly after half time, when we thought we might score in that period.

"But we never really looked like scoring.

"Having said that, teams have gone to Crewe and got beat so we are not too disappointed with a draw.

"We might have done better with certain things. Our passing, at times, wasn't as good as it should have been. And we were disappointing in the final third.

"So we didn't really create enough to win the game, I didn't feel."

Meanwhile, Rovers have sold 20-year-old starlet Andy McAvoy to Hartlepool.

Midfield man McAvoy has been on trial at the Third Division club recently and they have now decided to make the arrangement permanent, agreeing to pay Rovers up to £50,000 depending on appearances.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.